Names & News in North Iowa business for Sept. 30

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Clear Lake Bank & Trust was named a 2018 Top Workplaces honor by The Des Moines Register for the eighth consecutive year. The bank is one of only seven companies across the state of Iowa to have received the award since the award’s inception, according to a release.

The awards are based on anonymous employee feedback gathered through a third-party survey administered by a research partner. The survey measures several aspects of workplace culture.

Forest City-based Waldorf University is donating Ramsey Solutions’ Foundations in Personal Finance curriculum to five high schools, including Forest City High School. The others are in Albert Lea, Minnesota; Austin, Minnesota; Iowa Falls; and Fort Dodge.

The NIACC John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center and the North Iowa Area SBDC named Staci Ackerson of Shankland Insurance as the Entrepreneur of the Month for September 2018. Using state grants, she moved the business from downtown Charles City to the derelict Western Railroad depot. The renovation included adding two rental apartments and maintaining the historical charm of the building.

Mason City-based North Iowa Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center launched a charitable program that will provide one Mason City area resident a full-arch restoration treatment free of charge. For more information on the Second Chance program, visit nioralsurgery.com/second-chance.

Tim Schmidt, Garner city council member, was elected to serve on the executive board of the Iowa League of Cities during the group's annual conference Sept. 14 in Council Bluffs. Schmidt was first elected to the Garner City Council in November 2013. He also serves on the North Iowa Area Council of Governments.

Eric Tott, a licensed engineer with Mason City-based WHKS & Co., has become certified as a Professional Traffic Operations Engineer. Tott joined WHKS in 2007 and has managed and designed numerous roadway, traffic and infrastructure projects.

WAUKEE-based Access Systems, with an office in Mason City, was named second in the mid-sized company category for Top Workplaces in Iowa for 2018 by the Des Moines Register. Access was also named a Top Iowa Workplace for the fourth straight year, and CEO Shane Sloan was named a Top Leader.

Dr. Wei-Fen (Lisa) Hsu joined Mercy Family Clinic – Regency of Mason City. Wei-Fen received degrees from Chung-Shan Medical in Taiwan and from Poznan of Medical Sciences in Poland. She completed her residency at Mercy-North Iowa.

The Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program will offer a free education program in January in "central Iowa" for accepted applicants. For requirements and more information, visit 10KSBapply.com/Iowa. Applications are due Oct. 15.

Mason City Sleep Center was awarded a three-year accreditation by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care, recognizing "comprehensive, excellent patient care," according to a release.

U-Haul Company of Iowa, Inc. announced that Charles City-based C&C Auto Sales is a new dealer for its trucks, trailers, towing equipment, moving supplies and in-store boxes.

Scott Huffman has joined ATURA Architecture in Clear Lake as a senior designer. Huffman, a graduate of Iowa State, will be responsible for schematic design, design development, construction documents and project construction administration. He lives in Britt with his wife and son.

The Clear Lake Rotary Club is seeking nominations of worthy residents for its “William L. Nicholas Citizen of the Year” award for 2018. The award has been renamed in honor of long time member, William L. Nicholas.  Nominees may be any resident of Clear Lake whom an individual or an organization feels has served the community in a special way.

Nomination forms will be accepted through Oct. 12, and the recipient will be honored at the Nov. 9 meeting of the Clear Lake Rotary Club. Call 641-357-2992 or 641-529-1965 for more information.

Jessica Baldus will receive the Small Community Restaurant Neighbor Philanthropist award for Unc's Cheescakes in Osage from the Iowa Restaurant Association. Awards from the group will be presented at a banquet Oct. 8 in Des Moines. Restaurants were nominated by industry members and the public, and winners were selected by industry leaders, according to a release.

ABCM Corporation-owned Nora Springs Care Center was named to the Iowa National Nursing Home Quality Care Collaborative Honor Roll. The list recognizes performance on the Nursing Home Compare long-stay quality measures.

The HEALTH For Life Board, in partnership with the Cerro Gordo County Department of Public Health, awarded funding for two wellness initiatives in Plymouth. The Plymouth Parks and Recreation Department was awarded $3,510 to develop a community disk golf course. The Plymouth Fitness Class was awarded $295 to purchase new fitness equipment.

Project funding requests for application can be submitted by emailing Ron Osterholm at ron@cghealth.com.

Mason City's Country Meadow Place was named Property of the Year by the Iowa Assisted Living Association at its annual conference Aug. 23 in Des Moines. The award recognizes "outstanding performance including consistently high occupancy, innovative renovations or remodeling, special events, awards received and tenant comments," according to a release.

Chelsea Wagner has joined Mason City Ford Chrysler. She lives in Mason City with her boyfriend.

Jared Beenken has joined Clear Lake-based ATURA Architecture as a project architect. Beenken, a Buffalo Center native, graduated from Iowa State and previously worked for Brunton Architects & Engineers of North Mankato, Minn. He, his fiance and his future stepdaughter will relocate to Clear Lake this fall. 

United Way is holding a campaign kickoff and "Day of Caring" event Sept. 25 at the Mason City Chamber of Commerce. The day begins with breakfast at 7:30 a.m., and the program runs from 8 to 9 a.m. RSVP by Sept. 21 by calling 641-423-1774.

Garner-based Iowa Mold Tooling Co., Inc. announced the hire of two new design engineers, Jonathan Nosko and John Springer. Nosko earned a degree from Wisconsin-Platteville, while Spring is a graduate of Wisconsin-Madison.

Live Love Yoga, located in downtown Mason City, celebrated its fifth anniversary on Sept. 8 with an open house. The event featured chair massages, a henna artist from Des Moines, body art and refreshments.

The Mason City office of RSM US LLP recently announced the promotion of three employees: Laura Enderson, tax services supervisor; Nathan Burchett, consulting services senior associate; and Erin Schieffer, technology solutions senior associate.

David Collins has joined Clear Lake-based ATURA Architecture as a senior designer. Collins began his career in Seattle where he led as a BIM Specialist and has most recently been practicing in Raleigh, NC. At ATURA, he will be responsible for 3D modeling, renderings, documentation, and virtual reality experiences. He lives in Clear Lake with his wife and two sons.

Mary Peterson has been promoted to the position of commercial lines manager at FCIS Insurance in Forest City. Peterson has been employed with FCIS since July of 2007, and has an insurance designation of Certified Insurance Service Representative.

Clear Lake attorney Matt Berry was named the August recipient of the Spotlight on Service award from the Iowa State Bar Association. The award recognizes "work in the community." Berry, married to Jean and practicing law since 1981, has served as an ordained deacon to Catholic parishes in Mason City and Manly. He has also volunteered and served on boards with the Clear Lake Economic Development Corporation, Community Kitchen and One Vision.

Chris Stone has been promoted to finishing manager at Forest City-based Lichtsinn RV and will lead the Finishing Department. Stone recently joined Lichtsinn RV in April from Fabulous Freddy’s in Las Vegas, where he held the position of car wash manager.

America’s SBDC Iowa announced that Lake Time Brewery in Clear Lake, is the winner of the group's August Business of the Month award. Lake Time Brewery was founded by Bob and Suzy Rolling in 2012. In addition to a downtown Clear Lake location, Lake Time is available in 23 North Iowa counties and eight more in the Des Moines/Ames area.

Emily Schmitt, general counsel of Sheffield-based Sukup Manufacturing Co., was named to the Growing Rural Iowa Taskforce, as well as the Initiative’s Executive Committee, by Gov. Kim Reynolds. The group will hold its first meeting Sept. 7.

Swaledale Mayor John Drury was elected as a member of the governing committee of the Cerro Gordo County Community Foundation during its July meeting. Drury will serve a three-year term and joins other committee members Shaun Arneson, Dalena Barz, Angela Determan, Mary Ingham, Paula Petersburg, Marty Ramaekers, Adam Wedmore and Sterling Young.

Mason City's First Citizens Bank announced the promotion of Mindy Klapperich to universal banker and Theresa Starkey to personal banker. Both will be based out of the West Mason City location.

Klapperich, with First Citizens since 2005, most recently she has served as a private banker at the downtown Mason City location. Klapperich holds degrees from NIACC and Kaplan, and also graduated from the Iowa School of Banking. Klapperich and her husband live in Mason City with their daughter. 

Starkey has been a receptionist with at the West Mason City location since 2016. She has a degree from Kaplan, has two children and lives in Mason City.

Jeff Nichols, One Vision's chief executive officer since 2014, announced his resignation from the position, effective Sept. 30. He oversaw the transition of more than 120 supported individuals from a large group-home setting to smaller, community-based homes and the redevelopment to One Vision’s Clear Lake campus directed toward senior living. Nichols has accepted a position as CEO of Minnesota Autism Center. Mark Dodd, One Vision chief operating officer, will serve as interim CEO.

The NIACC Pappajohn Center and the Small Business Development Center is offering a free two-hour workshop designed for anyone who is considering starting a business. At Start Smart, participants will learn how to create a business plan, do market research, consider different types of business ownership and learn how to register a business. The workshop is 10 a.m. to noon Wednesday, Aug. 29, at IowaWORKS, 600 S. Pierce Ave., in Mason City. To register, call Mary Spitz at 641-422-4342 or email mary.spitz@niacc.edu.

Jeremy Gilbertson, previously finishing and quality control team lead, will be taking on the role of guest service specialist at Forest City-based Lichstinn RV. He will focus on educational orientations, the rentals department and inventory management support.

Our current system of soil and water conservation district offices in every county in Iowa came as a direct result of the passion and drive of the first administrator of what is now the Natural Resources Conservation Service, Hugh Hammond Bennett.

Bennett, a farmer from North Carolina where the construction of terraces was the primary erosion reduction practice in the 1920s, became convinced that vegetation and improvements in soil tilth were a more economical way to reduce soil erosion. Bennett established demonstration projects across the country to illustrate and test farming methods that improved soil quality and reduced erosion.

The economic depression and the drought of the 1930s that resulted in the Dust Bowl, prompted the United States government to invest more money and manpower into this effort which was led by Bennett. In 1935, he became the administrator of the Soil Conservation Service, which was charged with the protection of the land. The concept of the farmer and the soil conservation technician working together to write a conservation plan for each farm was developed and the current system of voluntary, incentive based conservation began.

During the 1940s, conservation districts were established across the United States. The districts were approved by ballot and run by local farmers, elected soil and water district commissioners. There was a lot of momentum for conservation at the time with President Franklin Delano Roosevelt stating, “The nation that destroys its soil destroys itself.”

Nearly 75 years later, the districts are still carrying out their mission to protect the water, land, and air for all of our citizens. The name of the federal agency overseeing districts was changed to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, or NRCS, in 1994 to better reflect this mission.

As economic pressures to produce increasing quantities of food, feed, and fuel grow, producers sometimes forget the lessons of the 1930s. Modern farming technologies have reduced the need for tillage, which is the single largest cause of soil erosion. Incentive payments are available to help producers try new practices, such as no-till and cover crops, and there are a wide variety of programs to protect vulnerable lands.

As Hugh Hammond Bennett stated, “Out of the long list of nature’s gifts to man, none is perhaps so utterly essential to human life as soil.”

Francis Lauer will celebrate 50 years of serving North Iowa on Thursday, Sept. 20. The celebration runs 4 to 6 p.m. at 50 N. Eisenhower Ave., with a program at 5 p.m. There will be a bouncy house, activity stations and cake. 

Michael Ewing, with the Clarion home of Ewing Funeral Home and Monument Company, received the Certified Funeral Services Practitioner designation from the Academy of Professional Funeral Service Practice at a gathering in Springfield, Missouri. The certification, held by 18 directors in Iowa, includes training, education, professional, and community requirements.

Mason City-based WHKS & Co., a consulting civil engineering firm, is celebrating 70 years of continuous service in 2018. Founded in 1948, the firm employs more than 110 people.

Jay Mathahs, of Pro Ag Solutions LLC in Ventura, was recently recognized as a Master Seed Representative for Wyffels Hybrids at the company’s regional sales meeting. The gathering also includes training and discussions on corn seed sales.

Dr. Solomon M. Ondoma joined Mercy Neurosurgery Clinic. He completed his internship and his medical training at Mbarara University of Science and Technology in Mbarara, Uganda and later worked as a surgical officer in the country. He was a research association at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and recently completed his residency at University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison. He and his wife have three children.

First Citizens Trust & Investment Services announced the promotion of Carol Meyer to trust operations officer. She previously served as trust compliance officer, and has been with First Citizens for 18 years. Meyer, who is married with two daughters and six grandchildren, earned a degree from Minnesota State.

Chad Harrison recently opened his own accounting firm in Mason City: Chad Harrison CPA, PC. Harrison has 12 years in the accounting industry and specializes in serving small businesses tax needs. His staff includes Michele Harrison and Miranda Kruse. The firm is located at 4700 Fourth St. SW, Suite F.

Dr. Joseph Petersen joined Britt-based Hancock County Health System in early August. He will work at the inpatient unit as well as provide family practice services. Petersen, a native of Cushing, earned degrees from Des Moines University and completed his residency at Trinity Family. He lives in Britt.

The NIACC John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center and the North Iowa Area SBDC named Luis Garcia of Mr. Taco as the Entrepreneur of the Month for August 2018. He founded Mr. Taco in 2011 and expanded into Southbridge Mall in February 2016. He's added Mr. Churro and Sub Marine Soups & Sandwich Shop, also at Southbridge.

Employees from the Mason City accounting and consulting office of RSM US LLP recently held its annual Volunteer Day to benefit local and national nonprofits across the country. The local employees volunteered with the Habitat for Humanity North Central Iowa chapter, assisting with landscaping at a new home.